'68 Comeback

Monsieur Jeffrey Evans first cut his chops with the seminal '80s Ohio-based slop-rock group The Gibson Bros, one of the direct predecessors to the glut of '90s indie rock blues bands that produced Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, The Delta 72, The White Stripes. After nearly a decade with the group, Evans decided he'd had it with the group's crazed psychobilly and wanted to get back to the business of expunging demons and celebrating sinful passions on a dirty stage -- that is, really playing rock and roll. To that end, he assembled a sensational lineup featuring members of The Gories, Gloryhole, The Red Devils, and Monster Truck 005 and hit the road with a vengeance.

'68 Comeback is nothing less than a roaring beast of a band, a three-guitar monster that rips through searing, dirty-as-hell garage blues with such authenticity they could easily be contemporaries of the MC5 or Rolling Stones. Sure, the music's nothing new; Evans himself admits that. The point here isn't breaking fresh ground, it's reveling in the almighty power and the unparalleled ecstasy of pure undiluted Rock and Roll. If you can appreciate that, you can most definitely appreciate this band.

Evans and friends burst on the scene by releasing a fistful of singles which they collected on the Golden Rogues Collection in 1994. "Chantilly Rock (and a Pony's Tail)," from the group's second single, appears on this collection. That same year they released their first LP, Mr. Downchild, which features the Bo Diddley cover/tribute, "Bo Diddley 1969." After a bit of a hiatus, the group reappeared later in the decade with Bridge Too Fuckin' Far (1998) and Love Always Wins (1999).